"We the willing, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, with so little, for so long, we are now qualified to do anything, with nothing" By Konstantin Josef Jireček, a Czech historian, diplomat and slavist.

CEPO: South Sudan Joint Defense Board Holds its First Official Meeting

MR. EDMUND YAKANI BERIZILIOUS is the Executive Director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), a Juba-based South Sudanese civil society organization.

Tuesday, November 27, 2018 (PW) — Juba 27th November, 2018. The signed revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan dated 12th Sept. 2018 mandated the parties’ signatories to the agreement to establish a security mechanism called Joint Defense Board (JDB). JDB is composed of the Chiefs of Staff and Directors General of National Security Service, Police, and all other organized forces.

The heads of the armed opposition groups will continue as Commanders-in-Chief of their forces until the end of the Pre-Transitional Period or until the end of the unification process. On 25th Nov. 2018 first meeting for the formation of JDB was held in Khartoum under the chair of the Sudanese General Isam al-Din Mubarak while the IGAD Special Envoy Ismail Wasi delivered the opening speech.

The meeting discussed the regulations and timetables before to launch the implementation process of security arrangements including troop’s disengagement, cantonment, and joint training before the formation of unified forces. Community Empowerment for Progress Organization welcomes the formation of the JDB. It is remarkable move for speeding up the implementation of Chapter two of the revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the conflict in South Sudan.

Mr. Edmund Yakani, Executive Director of CEPO said JDB is critical mechanism for the implementation of the agreement provisions on permanent ceasefire and transitional security arrangements. JDB play instrumental role for operationalization of the permanent ceasefire and other security arrangement intended to be accomplished during the pre-transitional period.

Without full commitment to honor the permanent ceasefire and established the security arrangements for the pre-transitional period it will be harder for the parties to implement the agreement. JDB have a role to in nurturing trust and confidence among the armed groups’ signatories to the peace accord. JDB can now move faster in forming the Permanent ceasefire monitoring and verification mechanisms at national, state, county and payam levels. Mr. Yakani stressed.

CEPO is impressed by the recent positive developments around the implementation of R-ARCSS. But more efforts are needed by all stakeholders for accelerating the implementation of the peace accord provisions made for the pre-transitional period because already the processes has delayed.

Finally, CEPO is urging IGAD and AU to timely execute their expected responsibilities and duties for making the establishment of the peace accord mechanisms. We are urging IGAD to also take pro-active role of approach the other parties that non-signatories to R-ARCSS to be engage for joining the process of resolving political difference non-violently.

The Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) is a non-profit, civil society, South Sudanese organization, registered by the Ministry of Justice on 17th November 2010. The organization was initially formed in Khartoum in 1999 and consisted of mostly University students, but its scope broadened after it was established in Juba, Southern Sudan as a separate entity. Presently, CEPO is engaged in the areas of Peace and conflict mitigation, human rights, rule of law, livelihood, governance and democratic transformation. Mr. Edmund Yakani Berizilious is the Executive Director of CEPO.

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